Zimbabwe headed for new crisis

• President has told his team to refrain from making any offers of deal with opponents

HARARE, Sunday

On the eve of the first anniversary of the historic inauguration of Zimbabwe’s unity government already credited with halting record inflation and economic decline, the troubled country is back on the abyss.

Analysts say only a miracle will save the uneasy marriage between President Robert Mugabe and Prime Morgan Tsvangirai after the veteran ruler last week took a hardline stance on the ongoing negotiations to conclude outstanding issues from their power sharing agreement.

Mr Mugabe instructed his negotiators to refrain from making any further concessions with Mr Tsvangirai’s party until Western countries lift the targeted sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe.

The position was taken at a Zanu PF congress last December but the willy politician appears to have seized upon British Foreign Secretary David Miliband’s tactless statement that the UK would only consider lifting the sanctions on the advice of Mr Tsvangirai’s MDC.

Mr Miliband was speaking in the House of Commons where he stated that the removal of the sanctions would be predicated by the progress made by the unity government in Harare.

Zanu PF subsequently announced that it will not make further concessions leaving the unity government on the brink of collapse.

The MDC insists it has no powers to influence the removal of the sanctions by the European Union and the United States while Zanu PF maintains the former opposition party campaigned for the embargo.

Close to 40 state owned companies were slapped with sanctions by the EU along with 2000 individuals connected to President Mugabe and Zanu at the height of Zimbabwe’s political crisis.

The EU and the US said the sanctions were meant to force Zimbabwe’s former administration to restore democracy.